Free: Coming of Age at the End of History by Lea Ypi

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Free: Coming of Age at the End of History by Lea Ypi: Episode 2

Episode 2

BBC Radio 4 - Free: Coming of Age at the End of History by Lea Ypi, Episode 2

In 1985, the death of Albania’s leader, Enver Hoxha, brought dramatic changes.

In 1985, the death of the Communist Party leader and founder of the Albanian state, the revered Enver Hoxha, meant the beginning of the end of history for the young Lea Ypi.

Lea Ypi grew up in one of the most isolated countries on earth, a place where communist ideals had officially replaced religion. Having been dominated by the Ottoman Empire for the best part of five centuries, Albania became independent and then briefly a monarchy ruled by the self-appointed King Zog in the early 20th century. 

After being occupied first by the Italians and then the Germans in World War II, a new republic was created in 1945. Under the leadership of the dicatator, Enver Hoxha, Albania became the last Stalinist outpost in Europe. It was almost impossible to visit, almost impossible to leave. It was a place of queuing and scarcity, of political executions and secret police. 

To Lea, it was home. People were equal, neighbours helped each other, and children were expected to build a better world. There was community and hope.

Then, in December 1990, a year after the fall of the Berlin Wall, everything changed. The statues of Stalin and Hoxha were toppled. Almost overnight, people could vote freely, wear what they liked and worship as they wished. There was no longer anything to fear from prying ears. But factories shut, jobs disappeared, and thousands fled to Italy on crowded ships, only to be sent back. Predatory pyramid schemes eventually bankrupted the country, leading to violent conflict. 

As one generation's aspirations became another's disillusionment, and as her own family's secrets were revealed, Lea found herself questioning what freedom really meant.

The music used is from the famous Albanian song "A Pickaxe in One Hand, A Riﬂe in the Other" (Ansambli Amator Artistik I Qytetit Të Tiranës "Në ǋërën Dorë Kazmën, Në Tjetrën Pushkën") recorded by the Amateur Art Ensemble in 1968. The first few bars of the song were also used as the interval signal on Radio Tirana.


Written and read by Lea Ypi
Abridged by Jill Waters and Isobel Creed
Produced by Jill Waters 

A Waters Company production for BBC Radio 4

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Lea Ypi's account of growing up in communist Albania in the 1980s and 90s.

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